When was the last time you began an email with "Dear" either personal or business?  I haven't received an email that said "Dear Elie" for a long long while.  Just as my first grade teacher taught me, in the beginning of the Internet boom, you wouldn't dare begin a formal communication let alone a business email without the formality Dear.  What happened over the past ten years to erode formality in email?

Don't even mention email closings.  These days I'm lucky to get a "Thanks".  These days, email closings usually end with a black line followed by the person's name or email signature.

I'm not that formal of a guy.  I don't wear a suit to work nor do I require guests to wait in the reception area when they come to my office.  But if you don't know me or have never done business with me and want to sell me something, for god sakes be polite.

There are some lessons to be learned form the Nigerian spam scammers.